Daytona Ave. bridge 'on its way'

Thursday

Dec 6, 2012 at 3:52 PM

A bid protest appealed to the state's transportation secretary has been denied and one last appeal that could have been filed Friday wasn't.

CHRIS GRAHAMSTAFF WRITER

HOLLY HILL — Nearly two years after being shut down, construction is expected to begin on the Daytona Avenue bridge. "The bridge is on its way," City Manager Jim McCroskey said this week after getting off the phone with state officials. The bridge, built in 1945 and heavily used by police officers and firefighters, has been shut down since February 2011 after a routine maintenance check found signs of erosion and weakness. Federal funds were secured for the bridge and the price was advertised at $798,000. During the initial wave of bidding, two companies submitted proposals and were subsequently rejected by the Florida Department of Transportation. During a second round of bidding, three companies applied for the construction job, including Commercial Industrial Corp. with a bid of $780,000 and Sarver, Pa.-based Gregori Construction and Engineering Inc., with a bid more than $20,000 higher than the advertised price — $818,500. But the state passed over the first bid because the associated surveyor was in noncompliance with the state. Commercial Industrial Corp., however, in July filed a bid protest and ultimately appealed the case to the state's transportation secretary, who denied the company's claim. McCroskey said one last appeal could have been filed Friday but was not. Andy Gregori, vice president of Gregori Construction, which has a Florida base of operations, said he had not been informed whether his company had been awarded the project. He said the bridge would need to be designed before construction begins. "Ground wouldn't be broken for a little while, but we're anxious to do this one," he said. About as anxious as Gregori for the construction to begin is Police Chief Mark Barker. He said response times by his department and firefighters have been affected since the bridge closure with units having to travel on Riverside Drive or Ridgewood Avenue to get to points north of City Hall. He pointed out Daytona Avenue is one of few north-south roads that cut through the entire town. "We're really looking forward to it," he said.